Review: McLaren 570S Track Pack

Review: McLaren 570S Track Pack

Graham Scott - Autocar

Published:8:00 amMarch 20, 2017

Lighter weight, even more stellar performance

There’s really very little wrong with a 570S, but if you want to keep attracting buyers to your brand you have to keep offering them something new – most sales come in the first year of a new model’s lifecycle. So now we have the 570S but more packed for the track. And it’s packed light.

The 1313kg kerb weight of a stock 570S has had 25kg taken off it, not easy when everything was pared back before. How has McLaren achieved that? By adding lightweight race seats wrapped in Alcantara – the same material now wrapping the steering wheel and the rest of the cabin. There are some seriously lightweight alloys and some MSO exterior bits like a rear which is actually taller but adds another 29kg of downforce at 150mph – not a bad idea when you’re reducing weight by 25kg.

As befits a car with a Track Pack, there is also Track Telemetry software added which you can access through the infotainment screen. And you will be entertained.

The effects are subtle but they add up. It’s surprising how much this Track Packs adds, while removing weight at the same time. The effect, particularly of the Alcantara on seats and wheel, is to make you feel even more involved, even more central to the plot.

The 570S remains an astonishing sports car, but the Track Pack heads it more towards supercar territory. The pack costs £16,500 but you could argue it’s good value as it extends the car’s outer limits while in no way compromising its daily accessibility. How does McLaren make a car like this ride so well it would embarrass any number of family hatchbacks and yet handle so well on the track?